006 - The First Test

15th Mirtul 1357, ctd.

It steals five quills and the love letters plus 3 sheets of paper and a vial of ink from the trunk belonging to Jan Válek that he is hidden in.   Meanwhile, Thoma checks his compass. He's not fussed by the ship exploding and instead is investigating the trees and the sand to try to discover where he is. Thoma and Lox have an argument with Mary and Sarah who are trying to settle the group. Sarah invites them to do the assault course which upsets everybody.   It sneaks out of the crate he's hidden in and into the bushes and listens to what's going on. Moldrig turns back into a goblin and saunters up to the group hoping no one noticed.   Moldrig and Thoma have a conversation about It and what they're going to do with him, which It listens in to.   They all follow Sarah through the forest and find themselves faced with a platform beyond it. There are ropes hanging down and another platform on the other side beneath them. There are metal spikes on the forest floor. They start taking it in turns to try to swing across. Thoma climbs the trees and glides from one platform to the other. Aurelia Sanctus is worried about the strength needed to lift herself up onto the ropes. Moldrig casts jump on Aurelia discreetly to help her. People cross one at a time, and eventually Lox casts a spell which causes the plants on the forest ground to grow up over the spikes. People who fall from the ropes still take some damage, but don't risk being pierced by the spikes.   Next, the group faces a long gauntlet with a stone ball at one end which chases them down the gauntlet and is triggered at the 10ft mark. Many try to run it safely, although a few get hit by the ball. Lox and Villiam hold the balls back to let some of the slower people make it to the end.   Once everyone reaches the other end, they find themselves facing a large boulder up against a rock wall. Loretta Testa immediately starts pushing at it but without managing to make it move. Moldrig uses displace earth to create a downhill slope for Loretta to push the stone down which she does.   They pass through the archway and find themselves on a bridge over a deep ravine. They cross and the bridge leads them to a wall with stone steps which have been carved into it. Sarah tells them they have completed the first challenges, and must now enter the second stage: tests of Dexterity.